Prep Hoops Indiana Daily (1/18) - Sectional Draw Rapid Reactions

<p>We are nearing the best time of year as an Indiana High School Basketball fan. There is still one week remaining the regular season, but our postseason brackets have been set. On Sunday evening all 64 Sectionals, 16 across each class, were randomly drawn as teams learned the beginning of their path to Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Starting Monday, we will be previewing each sectional on a class-by-class basis. However, for now, let's run through some rapid reactions from the annual Sectional draw.</p>   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Class 1A</h2>   <p>Morgan Township, a legitimate contender to come out of the 1A North, received a bye in Sectional 49 at Kouts. They will await the winner of Kouts and Washington Township. Senior guard Keagan Holder is the player to watch in this field.</p>   <p>Sectional 59 at Indianapolis Lutheran features three teams ranked in the Prep Hoops Indiana Class 1A Top 10. This draw had to be done a second time after it originally left Central Christian out of the field. Greenwood Christian got the benefit of being opposing both Lutheran and Tindley. Tindley received the bye and will likely face the defending 1A state champion Lutheran Saints in the semifinal round.</p>   <p>Two of the top three teams in the state, plus another very competitive Loogootee team, are in the Sectional 63 field at Loogootee. #2 Barr-Reeve and #3 Orleans wouldn't have to play each other until the finals, but Barr-Reeve will have to go through host Loogootee to get there.</p>   <p>Class 1A #1 ranked Evansville Christian, led by [player_tooltip player_id='1158176' first='Josiah' last='Dunham'], received a bye in Sectional 64 at Tecumseh. They will await the winner of Cannelton and Northeast Dubois.</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Class 2A</h2>   <p>Sectional 37 at Bluffton is a loaded field. Blackhawk Christian, Adams Central, Manchester, and Bishop Luers have all spent time in the Prep Hoops Indiana Class 2A Top 10 this season. Luers is the favorite on paper led by [player_tooltip player_id='1749047' first='Dereon' last='Truesdale'] and Dreyln Truesdale. They open with Bluffton before taking on the winner of Manchester and Whitko. Blackhawk Christian got the bye up top and will likely face Adams Central in the semifinals.</p>   <p>Class 2A #2 Tipton is the favorite, on paper, to come out of the North and get to Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Their dynamic backcourt duo of [player_tooltip player_id='1297029' first='Grady' last='Carpenter'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1158205' first='Nolan' last='Swan'] is as good as anyone's in the state. They should have a pretty easy path through Sectional 39 which they host.</p>   <p>There are three Top 5 teams in Sectional 46 at Southwestern (Hanover). Purdue signee [player_tooltip player_id='1158245' first='Jack' last='Benter'] and #1 Brownstown Central will face-off against Henryville before likely taking on host #5 Southwestern (Hanover) in the semifinals. #3 Providence received the best draw staying on the opposite side of the bracket.</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Class 3A</h2>   <p>The top half of the bracket of Sectional 19 at South Bend Washington is loaded. South Bend St. Joseph got the benefit of the bye, but they await the winner of South Bend Washington and Mishawaka Marian.</p>   <p>All seven teams in Sectional 23 at Mississinewa are above .500 entering tournament play. Look out for the state's leading scorer [player_tooltip player_id='1747066' first='Josiah' last='Ball'] and his Maconaquah squad. They will open up with Oak Hill.</p>   <p>All eyes are on Sectional 27 at Guerin Catholic. Class 3A #1 Brebeuf Jesuit and the host Golden Eagles, who are ranked #6, are on opposite sides of the bracket. Meanwhile, they will have to go through Heritage Christian and Bishop Chatard respectively who earned byes to the semifinals.</p>   <p>Both Evansville Memorial and Evansville Bosse received byes in Sectional 32 at Boonville and appear to be on a collision course to facing each other in the final.</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Class 4A</h2>   <p>Sectional 2 at Crown Point is extremely well-balanced. Chesterton versus Portage is a heck of a first round matchup. Valparaiso, led by junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1297042' first='Jack' last='Smiley'], is looming on the other half of the bracket but have to contend with, likely, Crown Point in the semifinals.</p>   <p>Sectional 8 at Noblesville is always loaded and that certainly is true once again this season. According to the current Prep Hoops Indiana Class 4A Poll, #2 Fishers, #3 Noblesville, and #4 Westfield are all in this bracket. Fishers has to play Carmel who is playing as well as anyone in the state right now in the first round. Noblesville will take on Zionsville who is very dangerous with [player_tooltip player_id='1525678' first='Maguire' last='Mitchell'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1525679' first='Drew' last='Snively']. Meanwhile, Hamilton Southeastern got a bye which could setup a Mudsuck rematch in the semifinals.</p>   <p>There are also three Top 10 teams in Sectional 10 at Lawrence North. Cathedral got the benefit of the bye and will await the winner of Lawrence Central and Warren Central. It was certainly an advantageous draw for the Fighting Irish. Meanwhile, a potential semifinal battle between Crispus Attucks and Lawrence North is setup on the bottom half of the bracket.</p>   <p>Avon has to be pleased with their draw in Sectional 12 at Terre Haute South. Getting past the hosts won't be easy, but if they do they will find themselves in the finals. Most importantly, only one of Terre Haute North, Brownsburg, or Plainfield can get to the championship game out of the bottom half of the bracket.</p>   <p>Can Seymour back up their 16-4 regular season record by winning Sectional 16 which they host? It'll be tough in the first round against a Jeffersonville team with revenge on their mind. Look out for New Albany as well led by junior wing [player_tooltip player_id='2276379' first='Chris' last='Lampkins'].</p>

We are nearing the best time of year as an Indiana High School Basketball fan. There is still one week remaining the regular season, but our postseason brackets have been set. On Sunday evening all 64 Sectionals, 16 across each class, were randomly drawn as teams learned the beginning of their path to Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Starting Monday, we will be previewing each sectional on a class-by-class basis. However, for now, let's run through some rapid reactions from the annual Sectional draw.